Golden Yam Ring, sometimes also known as prosperity yam basket, is a famous dish among Chinese community especially during Chinese New Year and wedding banquets.
The Yam Ring
It is made of deep fried mashed yam and some spices enhancing the flavour. The most important spice to use here is the five-spice powder, it will enhance the fragrance of the yam ring. One of the uniqueness of deep fried yam is the mouthfeel that is crunchy on the exterior and fluffy on the interior.
To make the perfect yam ring, the temperature of the oil is the key to success. I don’t know the right temperature of the oil you should be using, but my trick is to test with a wooden chopstick. If you place a wooden chopstick into the oil and bubbles are coming out, then you are ready to fry it.
Another challenge I faced when making this dish is frying the rice vermicelli. I attempted a few times but it just cannot turn crispy, I guess it’s not enough heat. Frying the rice vermicelli needs a lot more heat than frying the yam ring. In the final attempt, I finally got it right. Thus, my advice for you is to fry the yam ring followed by rice vermicelli.
You probably saw some recipes that require you to soak the rice vermicelli, but I manage to fry them without soaking them. I will try the difference and let you know next time.
The Filling
In this recipe, I’m adding stir fried mixed vegetables as the filling for the dish, however, you can put anything up to your preference. Another popular alternative will be the Kung Pao Chicken.
The common vegetables that are used for stir fry vegetables are mushrooms, lentils, broccoli, baby corn, scallops as well as prawns. It’s really down to the matter of preference
Ingredients
Yam Ring
- 300 g yam
- 50 g wheat starch
- ½ tsp salt
- 10 g sugar
- Moderate five-spice powder
- 50 g unsalted butter
- Moderate rice vermicelli
Mix Vegetables
- 10 prawn
- Moderate broccoli
- 4 baby corn
- 1 carrot
- ½ beech mushroom
- ½ white beech mushroom
- 35 g cashew nut
- 5 garlic cloves
Instructions
Yam Ring
- Cut the yam into smaller pieces.
- Steam it for 15 – 20 minutes until softened.
- Mash the yam with potato masher.
- Combine the wheat starch and some hot water to form paste.
- Mix the yam well with salt, sugar, five-spice powder, wheat starch paste and unsalted butter.
- Chill the yam dough in the fridge for around 30 minutes
- Spread some wheat dough on the worktop. Knead the yam dough to form a ring shape.
- Deep fry the yam ring until golden.
- Deep fry the rice vermicelli.
Mixed Vegetables
- Cut all the vegetables into smaller pieces and deveining the prawns.
- Stir fry the chopped garlic until fragrant. Put all the vegetables and prawns into the pan.
- Put some water and simmer until the vegetables soften.
- Put some corn starch water. Stir until the sauce is thickened.
- Put the cooked mixed vegetables inside the yam ring.
